Handcrafts have been known since the dawn of time. The various needlework techniques of embroidering, crocheting and knitting are centuries old and were elevated to an art form in colonial America. Crochet techniques can offer many variations which have contributed to a variety of articles from the small and lacey to the large and colorful. Different patterns have been incorporated into crocheted pieces using a number of methods often determined by the skill of the crafter. Some articles can be made by fabricating a number of small squares or other shapes and fastening them together so that the final product exhibits a desired pattern. Designs can also be accomplished by changing the stitches and stitch combinations, by the use of more than one color, or a combination of both. A decorative complex pattern may also be added to a crocheted article after its completion using embroidery techniques.
The technique of filet crochet can be used to create articles that often incorporate letters and artistic designs. Filet crochet involves a graphed design that is worked in combinations of solids and spaces. It is usually worked in a fine thread so that the finished product resembles lace. The crafter works in one direction when working the right side rows and in the opposite direction when working on the wrong side rows. All rows are straight across and the finished pieces are often squares or rectangles though other shapes are possible. Any design that can be graphed in black and white squares can be made by filet crochet but it is usually used to fabricate place mats, doilies and other relatively small delicate articles made in a single piece and usually in a single color. The technique of filet crochet is not practical for constructing larger and more substantial articles such as afghans, wall hangings and garments.
Large articles such as afghans can be made in one piece using various crochet techniques. One method utilizes a large number of stitches that are maintained on the crochet hook. The crafter works back and forth across the rows. Other methods can use one stitch throughout the work-piece or several different stitches. Patterns or designs can be incorporated using different stitches, stitch combinations, or colors and additional adornments can be added by embroidery techniques after the crocheting has been completed. Afghans can also be made in strips or in small pieces such as squares, rounds or other shapes such as hexagons. The individual pieces are sewn or crocheted together after all have been completed. The order and arrangements of attaching the squares or strips will determine the look of the finished product. The best known type of afghan made from multiple small pieces is the “granny square” afghan where each square is made by starting with a circle of chain stitches and each row is built up around the circle. One or several colors can be used and the finished product can be as elaborate as the crafter desires. The techniques used to make afghans can also be used to make sweaters, coats and hats. Such articles can be made from squares or other small pieces, or the various parts of a garment can be made to specification as in the fabrication of a knitted garment.
Another popular afghan is constructed with a zigzag pattern often referred to as a ripple afghan. These are constructed by making a long line and building up row upon row until the desired length is reached. Only one stitch is maintained on the crochet hook at a time as the rows are worked. The zigzag effect is accomplished by increasing and decreasing stitches as the crafter works across each row. This type of afghan is made all in one piece. As with other crocheted articles made by building one row upon the next, the work is performed on both the right and wrong sides of the work-piece.
More intricate crocheted articles can also be accomplished by building on the techniques discussed above or by color blocking. These methods are described in “Decorative Crochet” published bimonthly by Les Editions de Saxe, S. A. of Lyon, France and in the United States at Danbury, Conn.
A number of new and very novel needlework designs and techniques were introduced in the book “Unexpected Knitting” by Debbie New, published by Schoolhouse Press of Pittsville, Wis. in 2003. One of these is designated ‘labyrinth knitting’. This technique produces a garment knitted in one piece that incorporates a labyrinth pattern involving a series of right angle turns accomplished by increasing and decreasing stitches. The pattern is fabricated by casting on thousands of stitches which are worked on several long circular needles at one time. The long row of stitches has multiple increase and decrease markers. Though the entire garment is made in a few rows, maintaining the work amounts to a Herculean task.
No such design resembling labyrinth knitting has heretofore been accomplished in crochet. The closest pattern is one described in a single page instruction sheet published by Caron International of Washington, N.C. in 1999. That pattern is made by starting with a center motif and building wavy rows around it in alternating colors.
A review of patented art in the needlework crafts reveals that few patents have issued. The ubiquitous nature of this art may offer one explanation. A patent for a method of constructing a large article, specifically an afghan, was issued to Abrahamson in 1982. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,354,443) The afghan was made of a number of individual crocheted squares. The corner squares and peripheral squares of the afghan were fabricated with a decorative border added to designated outer edges. When the squares were joined together in a specific order the finished afghan had a decorative border around its entire periphery and no further border had to be added. It is possible to extend this method to produce a finished article with a more complex pattern as long as each square contains an element of the pattern that can fit with another element in an adjoining square.
There is no method of constructing a single crocheted work-piece with a labyrinth or complex meandering pattern. There is a need for such a method and one that does not require thousands of stitches to be held on one needle or on multiple needles at any time during the course of the fabrication. There is a need for stitch combinations that would enable the fabrication of a crocheted work-piece incorporating a meandering pattern.